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First BIMSTEC Health Ministers’ Meeting

  • 12 Nov 2026

The First BIMSTEC Health Ministers’ Meeting was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka on November 11, 2026. It was chaired by Sri Lanka’s Health Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa.

  • The event concluded with the unanimous adoption of a Joint Ministerial Statement and the Revised BIMSTEC Plan of Action on Public Health (2026–2030).
  • Representing India, Union Health Minister Shri J.P. Nadda led regional and bilateral initiatives guided by India’s Neighbourhood First and MAHASAGAR policies.

Key Regional Outcomes

  • Public Health Roadmap (2026–2030): Establishes a structured framework for disease surveillance, pandemic preparedness, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), One Health, climate-resilient healthcare, and a BIMSTEC Digital Health Framework (telemedicine, interoperable health records, and AI in diagnostics).

Regional Centres of Excellence

  • India: To host the BIMSTEC Centre of Excellence in Traditional Medicine at the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA), Jamnagar, Gujarat, alongside the next BIMSTEC Task Force on Traditional Medicine.
  • Other Member Initiatives: Welcomed Sri Lanka’s proposed Regional Centre of Excellence for Public Health, Thailand’s Centre of Excellence on Tropical Medicine, and Bangladesh’s Regional Zoonotic Disease Observatory.

Institutionalized Dialogue

  • Member states agreed to convene Health Ministers’ and Senior Officials’ Meetings every two years, with Thailand set to host the Second Meeting in 2028.